Father
by Kyogre
Summary: semi-AU, oneshot. Iemitsu tried to be a good father. Whether he succeeded is somewhat debatable, but at least he did his best.


~.~.~

**Summary:** AU, oneshot. Iemitsu tried to be a good father. Whether he succeeded is somewhat debatable, but at least he did his best.  
**Notes:** Just something I attempted to do for Father's Day. It was a horrible struggle. I guess I'm just not capable of viewing or writing Iemitsu in a positive light.

~.~.~

"Here, your turn!" Nana beamed at him, holding out the tiny, blanket-swathed bundle.

Iemitsu paled and tried to edge away.

Tired, but more radiant than even on their wedding day, Nana refused to even acknowledge his reluctance and all but pressed the bundle into his arms. Iemitsu desperately wanted to flail, but he found himself frozen in terror instead.

What if his grip slipped? What if he dropped it? What if he held it wrong? What if he damaged it? What if…

The blankets shifted a little, and a tiny, scrunched up red face was revealed.

Objectively, Iemitsu realized that the newborn looked rather like an overlarge prune, with the wrinkled, squashed features of an old man. However, that objective view was utterly meaningless. Their son was the most beautiful, awe-inspiring thing Iemitsu had ever seen.

Swallowing heavily, Iemitsu managed to tear his eyes away and meet Nana's understanding gaze. He could tell she was thinking the same thing.

"Tsuna," Iemitsu blurted out, "like my father."

Nana put a finger to her chin. "Yoshi for luck," she added. "So, Tsunayoshi! Tsu-kun!"

Tsuna shifted a little with a small sound that wasn't even quite a yawn. He didn't open his eyes or grasp Iemitsu's finger, or any of the things you saw on television, but he didn't need to. Iemitsu already loved him.

~.~.~

"-And this one is Tsu-kun's first time seeing a puppy!" Nana explained cheerfully, almost cooing as she pointed to a photo of Tsuna tearfully running from the neighborhood Chihuahua.

It was set in a scrapbook of Tsuna's firsts, along with his first time crawling, his first step, his first New Years at the shrine. Her acquaintances thought Nana had gone overboard with the photos and videos of her son, even by the standards of the most adoring new mother, but there was a reason behind Nana's determination to seemingly record every moment of Tsuna's life.

Next to her on the couch, Iemitsu sobbed pathetically, his tears only flowing faster with every new photo. There were so many firsts he had missed! His boy was growing so fast.

Nana patted him on the shoulder. "Do you need a break?" she asked.

Sniffling, Iemitsu shook his head. He couldn't stop now. He needed to know what else his Tsuna had been up to. What else had his son learned? How big had he gotten?

…What had Tsuna not experienced yet? Because Iemitsu was determined to make at least one first memory with his son.

~.~.~

The first he ended up sharing with Tsuna was the boy's first emergency room visit.

It was entirely Iemitsu's fault, and even though it was only a broken leg — the doctor assured them it would heal in no time, no lasting harm done — it still felt like the greatest failure of Iemitsu's life.

How had a simple visit to the playground turned out like this? Iemitsu had just wanted Tsuna to have fun on the swings, to go higher than any of the other kids, so much that he had gotten entirely carried away pushing the boy and ignored Tsuna's terrified protests… up until Tsuna's nerveless grip slipped and he was sent flying at the apex of the swing's parabola.

Maybe that was the problem. He had wanted that, but Tsuna clearly hadn't. The boy hadn't even wanted to go outside in the first place.

Tsuna obviously remembered that fact, given the distrustful look he wore as he peered around Nana at his father.

"Tsu-kun, Papa is so sorry for being a big, useless dummy!" Iemitsu begged. "Please forgive me!"

Tsuna's unhappy look wobbled a little, but this time his misery and distrust overcame his naturally forgiving, accommodating personality. Turning away from his distraught father, he hid his face in his mother's shoulder.

Nana could only offer Iemitsu a somewhat sympathetic smile, though even she looked faintly reproving. It really was Iemitsu's fault, after all.

"Papa… Papa promises to never again make Tsu-kun do anything he hates!" Iemitsu blurted out desperately.

Finally, Tsuna looked at Iemitsu again, his lips pursed thoughtfully. It was the most judging expression Iemitsu had ever been subjected to.

"I promise!" he insisted, despite how unwise that promise would likely prove in the long term.

When Tsuna held out his tiny pinky, Iemitsu couldn't accept their pact fast enough.

~.~.~

Iemitsu had already been a teenager when he lit his Dying Will Flames for the first time.

It had saved his life, that power — Dying Will Mode — but Iemitsu, and the people who had witnessed it, had been terrified. He had stumbled home, half in shock, and all but barricaded himself in his room.

To Iemitsu's surprise, it was his father that patiently spoke to him through the door — a taciturn, grim man who seemed to eternally disapprove of Iemitsu's every decision.

"I spoke with the others who were there," Sawada Ietsuna spoke in his usual measured, stern way, but Iemitsu thought he could hear something weary in his tone. "Of course, they are already half convinced they were just imagining things."

"I didn't imagine… that," Iemitsu declared stubbornly. It had been half to himself, and he first thing he had said since then. The sound of his own voice surprised him.

There was a silence from the other side of the door, but Iemitsu could imagine his father nodding gravely. If nothing else, his father had never once been mocking toward him.

"It was the first time I have heard of such a thing," the man said calmly, quietly, but Iemitsu could easily hear him. It felt like even his heart had paused, waiting. "What they described… It was just like the story my grandfather told me, of his father…"

~.~.~

Iemitsu's great-great-grandfather, Sawada Ieyasu, had been a foreigner, a quiet, somber man, who was brought to Japan by his friend, the founder of the Shigure Soen Ryu sword style.

Ietsuna's grandfather hadn't remembered much of the man, who had been distant and passed away when he was still quite young — except for a single incident.

They had been attacked. The features of the men were lost in his memory, but he remembered clearly the bright flame that sprang to life on Sawada Ieyasu's forehead, the glow in his eyes and the way he fought, like something from another world.

Ietsuna had listened patiently to the old man, like a dutiful grandchild, though he had not believed a word of it.

There had been, he told Iemitsu, another memory inexplicably linked to that one in his grandfather's mind. The memory of an old man who had sought out their family long after Ieyasu's death.

Ietsuna's grandfather had remembered clearly the stranger's impossibly blue eyes, which had seemed to pierce through him. "You have inherited nothing of his power," the stranger judged. "To think his blood would dilute so completely. Hmph, what a waste…"

~.~.~

"Great-great-grandfather, where was he from?" Iemitsu demanded, throwing open the door.

His father looked at him with the same mild disapproval — couldn't he act with more self control and decorum? — but Iemitsu didn't care. "Italy," Ietsuna said, sighing heavily as he read the direction of his son's thoughts.

He didn't try to stop Iemitsu from leaving — from going to seek out the truth behind his strange power, behind his mysterious ancestor.

And in Italy… In Italy, Iemitsu found Vongola. The first time he saw that flickering crest of flame upon another's forehead… it felt like he had come home, had found his true family. Like he wasn't alone anymore.

~.~.~

Tsuna was only five when Iemitsu first noticed his Dying Will Flames, already burning bright and wild.

An ordinary person would have seen nothing, of course, and Nana had no idea, but it was only a matter of time before the Flames flaring under Tsuna's skin came bursting out.

"It would be best to seal them until Tsunayoshi is old enough to be trained properly," Nono judged.

But… But…

But Iemitsu had been so looking forward to helping his son! He would tell Tsuna all about their great ancestor, about the famiglia he had created, about his legacy, about everything! This would be something they could share, just between the two of them!

The ultimate proof that they were family…

Nono was right. For all that Iemitsu had gained, thanks to the power he had inherited from Primo, it had also been a difficult burden. For Tsuna, too, it would be a trial, an even harder one, given his young age.

But…

"No, there's no telling what might happen if we try to seal his Flames," Iemitsu said. "I'll train him. I'm sure Tsuna will be able to do it. He's Primo's descendent, after all."

But Iemitsu was a selfish man. He couldn't just give up the one undeniable link between him and his son.

He wanted them to share this secret, selfishly.

~.~.~

"Tsu-kun! I brought a snack!" Nana trilled, letting herself into her son's room. "You've been working so hard! How about a break?"

Tsuna squeaked and threw himself bodily over the table, trying to cover the books and papers spread out in front of him. It took Nana a moment to understand why — those books and papers were definitely not the math homework Tsuna had due the next day, which he was supposed to be working on.

Instead, he had been poring over his language textbook, a dictionary… and a postcard.

Nana smiled. "Ara, Tsu-kun! Is that why you've been studying so hard? You want to read Papa's postcard?" she asked. It had been a bit puzzling to her why her son, not academically inclined in the least, had suddenly become extremely studious. "You know, Mama can read it for you…"

Tsuna shook his head fiercely. "I can do it!" he insisted, pursing his lips cutely. "It's for me!"

He could already read his name on the card, and what if it held a special message about his and Iemitsu's secret? Sticking out his tongue in concentration, Tsuna got back to work, while Nana quietly slipped out and hurried to get the camera. She absolutely had to share this with her husband.

~.~.~

For security reasons, the only phone number Iemitsu had been able to give Nana was an absolute emergency one. However, he was able to provide a mailing address — a mail box, actually, a very, very secret one. It was more out of a sense of romanticism than any practicality. In Iemitsu's mind, receiving love letters from his Nana would be simply enchanting.

Nana didn't write often and hadn't done so at all, until Tsuna was born. After that, she still didn't write much, but she began to send her husband photographs of their son and whatever cute thing he had accomplished recently.

The latest package was a little too large and thick to be more photographs, and Iemitsu spent several long minutes building up his anticipation by examining it from all angles and shaking it carefully.

When he finally opened it, Iemitsu found a bright orange notebook with wide lines, to accommodate the childishly large handwriting within.

It was, Iemitsu found out from the note Nana had included, a project Tsuna had gotten full marks on — a rarity for him. The assignment had been to write a short story, freeform and purely creative, as practice. Most of the children had written anecdotes about their daily life, but Tsuna…

Tsuna had written about a superhero, or so it seemed at first glance. The story was simplistic, detailing the adventures of a man who could summon fire in his hands and on his forehead, which he used to protect his friends from bullies.

Well, it was obviously the work of a young boy, drawing from his still small experiences and world view, and Iemitsu made a mental note to himself to ask Nana if Tsuna was getting bullied at school, even as he chuckled at the comments Tsuna's teacher had written about the boy's creativity regarding the hero's powers.

…Come to think of it, when had Iemitsu told Tsuna about Dying Will Mode?

At first, Iemitsu had assumed that the hero was based on Tsuna himself — an idealized, adult version of him, strong and brave — but the main character was described as having golden hair, which made Iemitsu momentarily wonder if maybe his son hadn't written about him.

On the last page, there was an illustration — the messy sketch of a man, with a nest of yellow crayon hair, an orange check mark of a flame on his forehead, and a black cloak.

Something about that picture felt terribly familiar, but Iemitsu just couldn't put his finger on it…

~.~.~

"…I see. So that's the situation," Iemitsu said finally, when Nono fell silent. He glanced over his shoulder, as if trying to see through the wall of Nono's office to the boy he had glimpsed sitting morosely in the hallway. "I didn't even know Enrico had a son," he admitted. "How embarrassing…"

Nono smiled, though the expression was almost entirely joyless — unsurprising, given the circumstances. "That's good. It means all our efforts were not wasted," he said. "You understand, right? He might be my grandson, but he does not have the Sky Flame necessary to inherit the Vongola Ring."

"But despite that, certain parties might attempt to use him to play games with succession," Iemitsu sighed. "Especially now that…"

Now that not only Enrico, but also Massimo were dead, and Xanxus remained imprisoned at an undisclosed location.

"That's why I would like up you to take him into the CEDEF," Nono concluded, forcing down his reaction.

Iemitsu nodded slowly. That reasoning — becoming automatically excluded from the line of succession — had also played a part in his own decision to join the CEDEF. And while Nono couldn't order Iemitsu to accept someone into his organization, his requests carried a great deal of weight.

Glancing back over his shoulder again, Iemitsu thought of the boy sitting in the hallway. He was only about Tsuna's age, but already an orphan. What kind of father had Enrico been? Had they been close? Had he seen his son as a disappointment for not being born with Sky Flames?

Did that boy miss him? Did he have anywhere to go?

…If it was Tsuna, out there…

There was really only one answer. Iemitsu sighed, and Nono smiled faintly.

The boy looked up as Iemitsu stepped out into the hall. He didn't look much like the dark haired, sharp-featured Enrico, but Iemitsu could see a certain resemblance to Quinto in the boy's still soft, rounded features.

"Hey," Iemitsu greeted him, kneeling and trying to keep his smile gentle. "Uh, how to say this… I'll be taking care of you from now on. So let's try to get along, okay?"

Meeting the wide blue eyes that peered up at him, Iemitsu tried to look reassuring and dependable. It seemed to work, as the boy smiled tentatively. "…I'll do my best, I swear," he said.

"I know you won't let us down," Iemitsu assured him, feeling some of his usual confidence returning. "And as proof of joining the CEDEF… I know! Your code name will be… Basilicum!"

The boy's expression was determined as he nodded. "Yes, Master!"

~.~.~

Iemitsu tried to concentrate on backlog of work spread out across his desk, but it was hard.

He had finally managed to spare enough time to arrange a call to Japan, after months and months of urgent missions and issues to handle, but while Nana had been ecstatic to hear from him, Tsuna had refused to even go near the phone, to so much as say hello to his father.

It had, Iemitsu realized with a pang, been more than two years since he last visited, and almost as long since he contacted his family. No wonder Tsuna was too angry to speak to his father, especially now that he was getting older, more independent and closer to teenager-hood.

His little boy was growing up, and it wouldn't be long before he had no more use for his old man. Even Nana's photos had dwindled, now that Tsuna was no longer so willing to indulge in her desire to record every moment of his life.

Iemitsu sniffles and burst into tears.

"Nanaaaaa…. Tsunaaaaaa…." the Outside Adviser moaned pathetically, burying his face in his arms and drawing an ugly squiggle across the report he was supposed to be reading and signing.

Basil, who had just stepped through the door with yet another stack of paperwork, paused and stared. Still continuing his theatrics, Iemitsu waved him closer with one hand. He didn't need to look up to snag the top sheet from the stack and only required one quick glance to figure out what these new papers were about.

"Master… Forgive me if I overstep my bounds," Basil began, fidgeting a little, once he unloaded the stack on Iemitsu's desk, "but perhaps you should… visit them? We would be honored if you would entrust everything here to us…"

Iemitsu sighed. "It's not that I don't want to, or that I don't trust you guys," he said. "But I'm the only one who can handle this stuff. Like this thing," he waved the paper in his hand, "is for the Outside Adviser's eyes only. And we have that huge backlog of things like this. I just can't leave it."

Nana would understand, he wanted to say, but then he remembered Tsuna's stony refusal to even listen to Iemitsu's excuses, and suddenly teared up all over again.

This wasn't something that could be solved over the phone or with a postcard.

Basil watched his master wail pathetically with growing concern and a sense of desperation. He knew how much the man adored his family — Iemitsu had often tried to cheer him up with stories of the man's son. To think that their bond might be broken like this… He couldn't let that happen.

"Then… then please let me go in your place!" Basil declared, bowing deeply. "Master! I will convey your regrets and your love to your family!"

He'd grovel if he had to! He'd beg for forgiveness for nine days and nights, if that's what it would take to make Nana and Tsuna give Iemitsu another chance.

Iemitsu began to refuse, only to trail off. There were many reasons why that was a bad plan. But… Basil was loyal, relatively skilled, and unknown outside the CEDEF. He was the best possible messenger. And Nana would certainly love him. Maybe he and Tsuna could even become friends…

Looking at Basil's determined, pleading expression, Iemitsu couldn't bring himself to say no.

~.~.~

"S-so! Today was your first day of middle school, right? How was it?" Iemitsu blurted out, his tone just barely short of frantic in its cheerfulness.

As the silence from the other side of the phone stretched on, he began to fear Tsuna would hang up on him again, but the boy finally sighed and said, "…Fine, I guess."

That… that was much better than Iemitsu had expected, not even some terribly teenage comment about being impressed that Iemitsu remembered the date or his age, or anything like that. Basil, Iemitsu thought, would become an amazing diplomat one day, if he managed to soothe Tsuna this much.

"That's good," Iemitsu beamed, even though Tsuna couldn't see it. "That's great to hear! Be sure to have lots of fun! You only get to go to middle school once!"

Over the sound of his own laughter, Iemitsu could hear Tsuna sigh again. "I don't think school is all that fun…" Tsuna muttered, perhaps not intending Iemitsu to hear him.

"I know," Iemitsu said, surprisingly serious and even.

Nana had told him, after all, about Tsuna's lack of motivation and low grades. She hadn't said anything about bullying or the like, but Iemitsu couldn't shake the impression that there was something like that too.

Tsuna's silence was uncertain, but not quite so stifling this time.

"I know! How about joining a club?" Iemitsu suggested brightly. "What do you think, Tsuna? It'll be fun! You can make new friends, have a good time…"

"I don't really… have anything I'm interested in," Tsuna said dully.

"You won't know unless you try. You'll only be a first year once!" Iemitsu insisted.

"You already said that," Tsuna noted, the frown and suspicious look clear in his tone.

"Ah, well… that's…" Iemitsu shifted nervously. "Papa just wants you to make lots of good memories and be happy."

"Now you sound like Mom," Tsuna sighed.

"That's because we both love you," Iemitsu chuckled.

Still, the smile slid quickly off his face. Of course he wanted Tsuna to enjoy himself, while he still could. Things… things were going to become difficult soon, now that Tsuna was the next in line for succession — the only heir left.

The choices Tsuna had, such as they were, did not include an ordinary, peaceful life. Giving him that was no longer in Iemitsu's power, not in anyone's power.

"Tsu-kun," Iemitsu began, swallowing heavily, "Papa… Papa might…"

…Break their promise, to never make Tsuna do anything he hated.

"It's fine," Tsuna sighed, taking pity on Iemitsu. "I love you guys too."

"…Yeah. It'll be fine. It'll be alright," Iemitsu repeated, like a mantra - a prayer, and a promise.

He would do his best, everything in his power to make sure Tsuna was able to live, to be happy and healthy. He couldn't do anything less, as a father.

~.~.~


End file.
